Structural fire engineering has long relied on a prescriptive approach based on isolated member behavior under continuously heating standard fire. By definition, this approach does not allow comprehending ... [more ▼]

Structural fire engineering has long relied on a prescriptive approach based on isolated member behavior under continuously heating standard fire. By definition, this approach does not allow comprehending the effects of interaction between members of a complete structure nor the effects of real fire exposure. Yet, such effects can have a significant influence on the response of real buildings to fire. Notably, when a structure has survived a fully developed fire, the cooling phase that inevitably follows generates effects that may endanger the structure stability. This has been attested by real structural collapses and poses a specific threat to firefighters. However, the behavior of structures under natural fire and the causes of failure during cooling are still not well understood. This research investigates the response of steel-framed structures to natural fires with the aim to analyze the possible collapse mechanisms during cooling. Numerical simulations by nonlinear finite element method are conducted for different fire scenarios and structural designs. The simulations model the thermo-mechanical behavior of the frames accounting for the interaction between members during the entire fire duration until burnout. Different collapse mechanisms during cooling are highlighted and discussed, including connection failure and progressive collapse under localized fire. In the latter case, collapse of members not directly affected by the fire occurs during the cooling phase. These mechanisms result from a complex combination of several factors, such as the recovery of thermal elongation, the recovery of stiffness, and the prior development of permanent strains in the heated members. The results show that steel-framed structures are subject to collapse during the cooling phase of natural fires. Therefore, natural fires with heating-cooling sequences represent a loading case that should be considered in structural fire analyses and could lead to specific design provisions to prevent the occurrence of collapse during cooling. [less ▲]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a method for Hybrid Fire Testing (HFT) which is unconditionally stable, ensures equilibrium and compatibility at the interface and captures the global ... [more ▼]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a method for Hybrid Fire Testing (HFT) which is unconditionally stable, ensures equilibrium and compatibility at the interface and captures the global behavior of the analyzed structure. HFT is a technique that allows assessing experimentally the fire performance of a structural element under real boundary conditions that capture the effect of the surrounding structure. Design/methodology/approach – The paper starts with the analysis of the method used in the few previous HFT. Based on the analytical study of a simple one degree-of-freedom elastic system, it is shown that this previous method is fundamentally unstable in certain configurations that cannot be easily predicted in advance. Therefore, a new method is introduced to overcome the stability problem. The method is applied in a virtual hybrid test on a 2D reinforced concrete beam part of a moment resisting frame. Findings – It is shown through analytical developments and applicative examples that the stability of the method used in previous HFT depends on the stiffness ratio between the two substructures. The method is unstable when implemented in force control on a physical substructure that is less stiff than the surrounding structure. Conversely, the method is unstable when implemented in displacement control on a physical substructure stiffer than the remainder. In multi degrees-of-freedom tests where the temperature will affect the stiffness of the elements, it is generally not possible to ensure continuous stability throughout the test using this former method. Therefore, a new method is proposed where the stability is not dependent on the stiffness ratio between the two substructures. Application of the new method in a virtual HFT proved to be stable, to ensure compatibility and equilibrium at the interface and to reproduce accurately the global structural behavior. Originality/value – The paper provides a method to perform Hybrid Fire Tests which overcomes the stability problem lying in the former method. The efficiency of the new method is demonstrated in a virtual HFT with 3 degrees-of-freedom at the interface, the next step being its implementation in a real (laboratory) hybrid test. [less ▲]

Fire following earthquake (FFE), a cascading multi-hazard event, can cause major social and economical losses in a community. In this paper, two existing post-earthquake fire ignition models that are ... [more ▼]

Fire following earthquake (FFE), a cascading multi-hazard event, can cause major social and economical losses in a community. In this paper, two existing post-earthquake fire ignition models that are implemented in Geographic Information System (GIS) based platforms, Hazus and MAEViz/Ergo, are reviewed. The two platforms and their FFE modules have been studied for suitability in community resiliency evaluations. Based on the shortcomings in the existing literature, a new post-earthquake fire ignition model is proposed using historical FFE data and a probabilistic formulation. The procedure to create the database for the model using GIS-based tools is explained. The proposed model provides the probability of ignition at both census tract scale and individual buildings, and can be used to identify areas of a community with high risk of fire ignitions after an earthquake. The model also provides a breakdown of ignitions in different building types. Finally, the model is implemented in MAEViz/Ergo to demonstrate its application in a GIS-based software. [less ▲]

Annex CC of DIN EN 1992-1-2 NA presents a series of cases that allow benchmarking software tools aimed at the design of structures in a fire situation. With the goal of providing a validation document for ... [more ▼]

Annex CC of DIN EN 1992-1-2 NA presents a series of cases that allow benchmarking software tools aimed at the design of structures in a fire situation. With the goal of providing a validation document for the finite element code SAFIR [1], a comparison of the reference results for the cases presented in the Annex CC with the results obtained by SAFIR has been carried out and is presented in this document. The validation typically consists in a comparison between the value of a result (temperature, displacement or others) obtained by SAFIR and the value given as a reference and supposed to be the « true » result. The value obtained must fall in the interval stipulated by the document. [less ▲]

For most fires occurring in buildings with a concrete structural frame, the structural elements do not collapse during fire exposure, and further use of the building after fire may be possible. Fire can ... [more ▼]

For most fires occurring in buildings with a concrete structural frame, the structural elements do not collapse during fire exposure, and further use of the building after fire may be possible. Fire can nevertheless result in a permanent loss of strength and thus a post-fire evaluation of the residual load bearing capacity has to be made to inform decisions on continued use and the need for structural repairs. This evaluation is however particularly difficult due to the many uncertainties associated with both the fire exposure and the characteristics of the structural elements. These uncertainties cannot be neglected when determining the residual capacity since adequate safety is a major societal concern as indicated by the predominance of safety in current design standards and guidance documents. In this paper a comprehensive methodology is presented for the assessment of the residual capacity of concrete structures after exposure to fire. The methodology is introduced through application to a real-life case study of an apartment fire with a focus on the end-span of the affected continuous concrete slab. It results in a reliability-based evaluation of the maximum allowable characteristic value for the imposed load on the slab. The presented methodology is useful to make informed decision about continued use of structures after a fire event. [less ▲]

The local buckling capacity of fire exposed thin-walled steel cross sections is affected by the reduction in strength and stiffness due to elevated temperatures and the amplitude of the initial local ... [more ▼]

The local buckling capacity of fire exposed thin-walled steel cross sections is affected by the reduction in strength and stiffness due to elevated temperatures and the amplitude of the initial local imperfections. A usual method to estimate this capacity is the simulation of isolated plates (web: four sides simply supported plate, flange: three sides simply supported plate) that are subjected to in-plane compression until instability is observed. Several researchers have proposed design methods to calculate the capacity of these steel members at elevated temperatures based on isolated plate analysis, but they used different methodologies. This variability in hypotheses happens because there is no clear provision defining the numerical modeling procedure for fire design of steel plates in the codes (European or US). The paper proposes a methodology for finite element simulation of thin plates at elevated temperatures and its governing factors (amplitude of initial local imperfections, number of half-wave geometry of local imperfections, plate geometry (sides ratio a/b)). [less ▲]

Current codes and standards for fire design of structures in the United States are mainly based on design at the component level using prescriptive approaches, while performance-based design for fire can ... [more ▼]

Current codes and standards for fire design of structures in the United States are mainly based on design at the component level using prescriptive approaches, while performance-based design for fire can be used to address the needs for designing modern buildings with cost-effective solutions. Previous research shows that, when system-level performance is considered, fire protection on secondary beam elements in composite steel-concrete floor systems is not necessary due to the development of a membrane action in the concrete slab during fire. This study compares the fire design of a 9-story office building using prescriptive and performance-based designs. The safety levels of the two designs are investigated and compared. It is shown that performance-based design can be used to achieve the required level of safety currently enforced in the U.S. prescriptive guidelines, while providing an opportunity for cost reduction in fire protection material. [less ▲]

The local buckling capacity of fire exposed thin-walled steel cross sections is affected by the reduction in strength and stiffness due to elevated temperatures and the amplitude of the initial local ... [more ▼]

The local buckling capacity of fire exposed thin-walled steel cross sections is affected by the reduction in strength and stiffness due to elevated temperatures and the amplitude of the initial local imperfections. Several researchers have proposed design methods to calculate the capacity of the plates (i.e. web and flanges) that compose these steel members at elevated temperatures, but they used different shapes of steel plates (sides ratio a/b) and different amplitudes of local imperfections. This variability in hypotheses happens because there is no clear provision defining the numerical modeling procedure for fire design of steel plates in the codes (European or US). According to the theory of perfect plates, the critical load depends of the shape of the rectangular plate (e.g. the sides ratio a/b) and the corresponding buckling mode (number of half waves), the boundary and the loading conditions. This paper reviews the existing code provisions and compares the existing design models and their assumptions for thin-walled steel cross sections. Elements of the theory of perfect plates are presented. Parametric finite element analyses are then conducted on isolated steel plates at elevated temperatures to investigate the effect of the plate shape (a/b ratio) and imperfections (amplitude and number of half wave lengths). From the analysis, the governing parameter will be estimated (a/b vs imperfections) for simulation of isolated flanges and webs. Finally, recommendations for the numerical modeling of steel plates at elevated temperatures are proposed. [less ▲]

Performance-based structural fire design provides a rational methodology for designing modern buildings with cost-effective solutions. However, in the United States, fire design still largely relies on ... [more ▼]

Performance-based structural fire design provides a rational methodology for designing modern buildings with cost-effective solutions. However, in the United States, fire design still largely relies on design at the component level using prescriptive approaches. With performance-based approaches, there is an opportunity to benefit from increased flexibility and reduced cost in the design, but these advantages need to be explicitly described and disseminated to promote this shift in paradigm. In this paper, a comparative analysis is conducted on multi-story steel-concrete buildings designed following performance-based and U.S. prescriptive approaches. The steel-concrete composite structure allows taking advantage of tensile membrane action in the slab during fire, and therefore removing the fire protection on secondary beam elements. The nonlinear finite element software SAFIR is used to model the behavior of the buildings under the standard ASTM fire and a natural fire determined using the two-zone fire model CFAST. The numerical simulations show that performance-based design can be used to achieve the required level of safety currently enforced in the U.S. prescriptive guidelines, while providing an opportunity for cost reduction in fire protection material. [less ▲]

Hybrid Fire Testing (HFT) is a technique that allows assessing experimentally the fire performance of a structural element under real boundary conditions that capture the effect of the surrounding ... [more ▼]

Hybrid Fire Testing (HFT) is a technique that allows assessing experimentally the fire performance of a structural element under real boundary conditions that capture the effect of the surrounding structure. To enable HFT, there is a need for a method that is unconditionally stable, ensures equilibrium and compatibility at the interface and captures the global behaviour of the analysed structure. A few attempts at conducting HFT have been described in the literature, but it can be shown, based on the analytical study of a simple one degree-of-freedom elastic system, that the considered method was fundamentally unstable in certain configurations which depend on the relative stiffness between the two substructures, but which cannot be easily predicted in advance. In this paper, a new method is introduced to overcome the stability problem and it is shown through analytical developments and applicative examples that the stability of the new method does not depend on the stiffness ratio between the two substructures. The new method is applied in a virtual hybrid test on a 2D reinforced concrete beam part of a moment resisting frame, showing that stability, equilibrium and compatibility are ensured on the considered multiple degree-of-freedom system. Besides, the virtual HFT succeeds in reproducing the global behaviour of the analysed structure. The method development and implementation in a virtual (numerical) setting is described, the next step being its implementation in a real (laboratory) hybrid test. [less ▲]

High strength concrete (HSC) provides several advantages over normal strength concrete (NSC) and is being used in multi-story buildings for reducing the dimensions of the columns sections and increasing ... [more ▼]

High strength concrete (HSC) provides several advantages over normal strength concrete (NSC) and is being used in multi-story buildings for reducing the dimensions of the columns sections and increasing the net marketable area. However, upgrading of concrete strength class in a building may affect the fire performance, due to higher rates of strength loss with temperature and higher susceptibility to spalling of HSC compared with NSC. Reduction of columns sections also leads to increased member slenderness and faster temperature increase in the section core. These detrimental effects are well known, but their impact on fire performance of structures has not been established in terms of comparative advantage between NSC and HSC. In other words, it is not clear whether the consideration of fire resistance limits the opportunities for use of HSC for reducing the dimensions of columns sections in multi-story buildings. This research aims to address this question by comparing the fire behaviour of reinforced concrete columns made of NSC and HSC using nonlinear finite element modelling. The evolution of load bearing capacity of the columns is established as a function of the fire exposure duration. A 15-story car park structure is adopted as a case study with alternative designs for the columns based on strength classes ranging from C30 to C90. Results show that, although the replacement of NSC by HSC accelerates the reduction rate of columns capacity under fire, the columns generally have significant reserves in resistance leading to sufficient fire resistance. This study gives an insight into the impact of replacing stocky sections in NSC by more slender sections in HSC on fire resistance rating for multi-story structures. [less ▲]

The local buckling capacity of fire exposed thin-walled steel cross sections is affected by the reduction in strength and stiffness due to elevated temperatures and by the amplitude of the initial local ... [more ▼]

The local buckling capacity of fire exposed thin-walled steel cross sections is affected by the reduction in strength and stiffness due to elevated temperatures and by the amplitude of the initial local imperfections. Several researchers have proposed design methods to calculate the capacity of these steel members at elevated temperatures, but they used different methodologies and different amplitude of local imperfections in the extensive numerical analyses that are typically at the base of these methods. This variability in hypotheses happens because there is no clear provision defining the local imperfection amplitude for fire design in the codes (European or US). EN 1993-1-5 proposes amplitude values of local imperfections for ambient temperature design, while EN 1090-2 defines a -different- maximum allowed size of fabrication tolerance during production. Meanwhile, other sizes of local imperfections have also been proposed in the literature, with values different than those from EN 1993-1-5 and EN 1090-2. This paper reviews the existing code provisions and compares the existing design models and their assumptions for thin-walled steel cross sections. Finite element analyses are then conducted on isolated steel plates at elevated temperatures to investigate the effect of local imperfections. Finally, specific amplitude of local imperfections is proposed for fire design of thin-walled steel members. [less ▲]

Purpose: This paper describes the theoretical background and main hypotheses at the basis of SAFIR®, a nonlinear finite element software for modeling structures in fire. The paper also explains how to use ... [more ▼]

Purpose: This paper describes the theoretical background and main hypotheses at the basis of SAFIR®, a nonlinear finite element software for modeling structures in fire. The paper also explains how to use the software at its full extent. The discussed numerical modeling principles can be applied with other similar software. Approach: Following a general overview of the organization of the software, the thermal analysis part is explained, with the basic equations and the different possibilities to apply thermal boundary conditions (compartment fire, localized fire, etc.). Next, the mechanical analysis part is detailed, including the time integration procedures and the different types of finite elements: beam, truss, shell, spring and solid. Finally, the material laws are described. The software capabilities and limitations are discussed throughout the paper. Findings: By accommodating multiple types of finite elements and materials, by allowing the user to consider virtually any section type and to input the fire attack in multiple forms, the software SAFIR® is a comprehensive tool for investigating the behavior of structures in the fire situation. Meanwhile, being developed exclusively for its well-defined field of application, it remains relatively easy to use. Value: The paper will improve the knowledge of readers (researchers, designers and authorities) about numerical modeling used in structural fire engineering in general and the capabilities of a particular software largely used in the fire engineering community. [less ▲]

In building renovation, the real behaviour of reinforced concrete slabs cannot always be explained by the bending theory according to classical structural mechanics. Indeed, the bearing capacity, as ... [more ▼]

In building renovation, the real behaviour of reinforced concrete slabs cannot always be explained by the bending theory according to classical structural mechanics. Indeed, the bearing capacity, as assessed for instance by a loading test, sometimes appears to be much higher than what would be expected. This phenomenon may be caused by the activation of an arch-effect or so-called compressive membrane action (CMA) which can develop even with small vertical deformations. For a slab which is completely restrained, the presence of reinforcement becomes of lesser importance when this phenomenon is activated (except for end fields). Hence, for fire resistance purposes, it can be discussed whether reinforcement and concrete cover has a smaller influence on the bearing capacity for slabs subjected to fire which exhibit a significant concrete compressive membrane behaviour. This paper presents a loading test performed on a real concrete building which highlighted the development of CMA as the load bearing mode. It then proposes a strategy to evaluate the behaviour resulting from the development of CMA in reinforced concrete slabs at ambient and at elevated temperature based on numerical modelling. The numerical analyses are performed with the finite element software SAFIR® using a strip of layered shell elements. A plastic-damage constitutive model with an explicit transient creep formulation is used to capture the concrete behaviour at elevated temperature. [less ▲]

Recent efforts aim at assessing the fire performance of structures in a probabilistic framework. But there is still no well-established method to quantify the reliability of entire buildings. Previous ... [more ▼]

Recent efforts aim at assessing the fire performance of structures in a probabilistic framework. But there is still no well-established method to quantify the reliability of entire buildings. Previous works focused on isolated structural members, therefore not allowing for a determination of the global safety level of buildings. Here, a new methodology is developed to quantify the reliability of buildings in fire. The methodology uses Monte Carlo simulations for constructing fragility functions associated with different fire breakout locations in a building, then combines the functions to characterize the overall building conditional probability of failure, and finally incorporates the probabilistic models for intensity measure and fire occurrence likelihood. The methodology is applied to multi-story steel buildings. This work addresses fire reliability at the building scale, and therefore is useful for standardizing safety level as well as for evaluating community resilience. [less ▲]